Partnership profile

Aalen University, in the eastern part of Baden-Württemberg, is one of Germany’s leading institutions in application-oriented materials research. The SmartPro partnership, which is funded via “Strong Universities of Applied Sciences – Impulse for the Region” (FH-Impuls) funding of the BMBF, builds on this expertise to develop smart materials and process technologies for energy-efficient products – in line with the needs of the regional companies, which are predominantly based in the automotive, mechanical engineering, toolmaking and photonics sectors. And all in keeping with the spirit of the energy transition, which the university would like to make an important contribution to with SmartPro.

Aalen, located between Stuttgart and Ulm, is a city of about 70,000 inhabitants on the north-eastern edge of the Swabian Jura mountains and home to a very innovative university that attracts scientists and students from near and far – because, in addition to a natural forest campus and a personal, family environment, it offers one thing above all else: research at the highest level. It is not without reason that it is considered one of the strongest research universities of applied sciences in Germany. Its main focus is on the areas of advanced materials and manufacturing as well as photonics.

The SmartPro partnership network builds on these focal points. Together with companies from the region, scientists at the university research smart materials and intelligent technologies in order to develop sustainable, energy-efficient products with economic benefits. A total of 16 working groups at Aalen University and more than 30 companies, including 14 small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), are involved in the partnership. In addition, there are renowned research and regional transfer partners such as Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) and the Research Institute for Precious Metals and Metals Chemistry (fem), as well as the Baden-Württemberg state agency for lightweight construction (Leichtbau BW GmbH) and the Ostwürttemberg Chamber of Industry and Commerce. A total of more than 50 partners are on board – a good foundation for long-term collaboration that enables the effective realisation of research results.

“With SmartPro, we want to strengthen our central research priorities, intensify the transfer of knowledge and technology to the region and provide impetus for innovation,” says partnership spokeswoman Professor Dagmar Goll, summarising the goals of Aalen University with regard to SmartPro. The contribution of SmartPro to the energy transition is of great relevance to society, because the partnership addresses two challenges that are central to achieving energy and climate policy goals: the careful use of limited resources such as materials and raw materials and the sustainable and climate-friendly use of energy.

SmartPro – Key to smart products

In order to lay the foundation for smart products, for example in the fields of electromobility, renewable energies and Industry 4.0–compatible factory automation, research activities are focused on four promising fields of application – electrical energy converters, battery technologies, innovative lightweight construction technologies and manufacturing technologies for industrial 4.0 applications – in the form of four central projects:

Energy converters: Tailor-made magnetic materials and tools for light, compact and efficient electric engines (MagNetz)

Magnets are ubiquitous; they are found in electric engines, generators and battery-powered devices, for example. New magnetic materials as well as technologies for their processing go into efficient electrical energy converters, which are of importance for resource-efficient mobility (traction drives), renewable energy (wind power) and industrial or factory automation, as well as for power tools and household appliances.

Magnetic materials are key for efficient future-proof energy converters which can be all the lighter and more compact the more powerful the magnets are.

However, today’s materials have disadvantages like high material costs due to the rare earth metals they contain. Generating material- and energy-efficient products which are attractive to the market in the future increasingly calls for function-optimised magnetic materials with guaranteed quality. These new magnetic materials are being researched within the framework of SmartPro.

Energy storage: Smart material systems, intelligent production and quality processes for lithium-based batteries (LiMaProMet)

The demand for rechargeable batteries with high energy density, increased safety and extended service life is very high due to the increased requirements placed on mobile applications. The focus is on range, running and charging times and safety for electromobility and portable electronics such as smartphones or navigation devices.

The increased usage of renewable energy sources as part of the energy transition requires cost-effective energy storage systems with extended service lives. Smart battery materials, intelligent production processes and quality assessment methods are key technologies for resource-efficient mobility and energy supply. Hence, the LiMaProMet research project aims to develop intelligent lithium-based energy storage technologies up to market maturity.

Lightweight construction: Intelligent joining processes, designs for lightweight constructions and quality assurance methods for energy-efficient products (InDiMat)

Lightweight construction is a cross-sector key technology of outstanding importance for transport, energy supply and industrial automation. The focus here is mainly on resource and energy efficiency.

Carbon-fibre-reinforced polymers (CFRP) are among the most promising lightweight construction materials – often realised as a multi-material composite for a wide range of applications, for instance with light metals and high-strength steels. Cost-efficient, intelligent process approaches for hybrid lightweight construction are the focus of the InDiMat project.

3D printing: Intelligent components for resource and energy efficiency produced using additive manufacturing (AddFunK)

In additive manufacturing, components are manufactured in layers using digital 3D construction data. Additive manufacturing is one of the key technologies for Industry 4.0 and the internet of things (IoT). It enables the economic and resource-efficient production of individualised tailor-made products via 3D printing using smart materials or new combinations of material such as cermet, which are materials consisting of metal and a ceramic component.

Besides its usage in entirely new applications and its functional integration as metal or optical elements based on intelligent manufacturing processes, the research also focuses on engineering design and custom physical properties.